Rare leucistic little penguin found on South Australian beach
By Caroline Horn
ABC South East SA
Topic:Birds
15m ago15 minutes agoWed 2 Apr 2025 at 3:51am
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In short:
An rare leucistic little penguin was found on a beach at Port Elliot on Saturday.
Now called Pearl, the unusually-coloured bird was found in an emaciated state
What's next:
The little penguin is now in the care of wildlife carers who are attempting to help her gain weight.
A rare leucistic little penguin has been found on a Port Elliot beach in an emaciated state.
The adult female little penguin's unusual colour and poor condition attracted the attention of a number of people on Boomer Beach on Saturday evening.
She has since been taken in by Wildlife Welfare Organisation (WWO) in the nearby town of Goolwa, where she has been given the name Pearl.
A small white little penguin on a beach
The penguin was found on Boomer Beach at Port Elliot. (Supplied: Karl Bolzon)
WWO representative Rena Robinson said she had been saving little penguins and other wildlife for decades but had never seen a leucistic little penguin before.
"Everybody said, 'Wow, wow'," Mrs Robinson said.
She said she had not yet found another example of a previous sighting of a leucistic little penguin despite talking to several experts about Pearl's care.
She said her organisation was concentrating on helping Pearl, who weighed less than one kilogram, to gain weight.
She said Pearl's long-term future would be decided when she was in a better condition.
A group of people in front of a van and car
Pearl is being cared for by the team at the Wildlife Welfare Organisation at Goolwa. (ABC South East SA: Caroline Horn)
She said it was not uncommon for emaciated birds to be found on beaches in her area, particularly at this time of year.
Pearl has been given a special diet and anti-fungal medication that was made-to-order by a local compounding pharmacy.
It was made to prevent aspergillosis, a respiratory fungal disease often found in penguins needing to be cared for by humans.
A pale penguin on a towel
Pearl was in an emaciated state when she was found. (ABC South East SA: Caroline Horn)
Leucism and its potential effects
Little penguins expert Diane Colombelli-Négrel has been studying the birds in South Australia for more than 10 years.
She said she had never seen a leucistic little penguin before, nor could she find any records of one being found in the state.
A woman in a university office next to a monitor with a little penguin picture displayed
Diane Colombelli-Negrel says it was the first leucistic little penguin she had seen. (ABC South East SA: Caroline Horn)
"This is the first one I'm hearing of," she said.
Dr Colombelli-Négrel said leucism was a genetic mutation that rendered birds completely one colour or white.
She said Pearl's completely pale colouring could be a disadvantage in the wild.
"There is a purpose to the double-colour plumage with sea birds," she said.
"The darker [feathers are] supposed to match the colour of the sea, so when a predator is above they are hard to see against the water."
Dr Colombelli-Négrel said the unusual colouring could also make it more difficult for Pearl to find a mate as the other little penguins could reject her for being different.
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Posted15m ago15 minutes agoWed 2 Apr 2025 at 3:51am
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